Why Read the Bible: To Learn How to Talk with God

I cry aloud to the LORD;
I lift up my voice to the LORD for mercy.
I pour out before him my complaint;
before him I tell my trouble.

When my spirit grows faint within me,
it is you who watch over my way.
In the path where I walk
people have hidden a snare for me.
Look and see, there is no one at my right hand;
no one is concerned for me.
I have no refuge;
no one cares for my life.

I cry to you, LORD;
I say, “You are my refuge,
my portion in the land of the living.”

Listen to my cry,
for I am in desperate need;
rescue me from those who pursue me,
for they are too strong for me.
Set me free from my prison,
that I may praise your name.
Then the righteous will gather about me
because of your goodness to me.

–Psalm 142 (NIV)

If you have ever wanted to talk with God but don’t know how, take a look at the Psalms. They provide wonderful examples of how to talk with God as well as rock-solid theology. Take today’s psalm, for example. It is ascribed to David and written in the context when he was hiding in a cave trying to avoid being killed by his enemies. You can’t get much more real than that.

Note first the humility that is implicit in the entire psalm. The psalmist acknowledges his need for God’s mercy and his sometimes inability to deal with all that life throws at him (like hiding in a cave to avoid being killed by his enemies). The psalmist consequently turns to God to help bolster his failing courage and perseverance in extremely difficult times.

Note too the honesty contained in this psalm. The psalmist is not bashful in complaining to God about his situation (and the implicit assumption that God will do something about it). We also see the existential human fear expressed that we are really quite alone and forgotten in this world. Here the psalmist asks that God remember him by being his strong refuge.

And what will the psalmist do when God answers his cry for mercy and help? He will praise God for his goodness and justice. Of course, if God is worthy of our praise he is also worthy of our obedience and you can see this notion running throughout virtually every psalm, either explicitly or implied.

What this suggests, of course, is that God is accessible to us. He cares for us and will listen to us, even if he does not always grant our requests. We should certainly be able to understand this latter notion, especially if we have kids of our own. How many times have you had your kids ask for things that you know are not good for them and refused their requests because you love them and want the best for them? How much more so does this apply to God when he deals with us and our sometimes less than stellar requests? And of course as with any good conversation, we should take time to listen for God’s response. A one-sided conversation is called a monologue and in the context of prayer that almost always signals a lack of humility on our part.

Here then are some key ingredients for talking with God (and listening for his response in Scripture). Praise, thanksgiving, humility, honesty, faith that results in a confident expectation that we have God’s ear, and when necessary asking for God’s mercy as we acknowledge our human condition.

Scripture is our living witness that God is accessible to us and will never turn us away. If you find that there are times when you want to talk to God but just don’t have the words, look through the Psalter (the collective name for all 150 psalms) and pray the one(s) that best reflect your situation and/or state of mind. Don’t worry. The whole gamut of human emotions can be found in the psalms.

God loves us and created us to have a relationship with him. Part of developing that relationship is learning how to have an ongoing conversation with him. Is it not very cool that God has even provided examples for us to follow to help us learn how to have meaningful conversation with him? If you are not yet having those kinds of meaningful, ongoing conversations with your Creator, what are you waiting for?